Baby Sitting Should Be Easy
by Nat-Cat7
Summary: Hermione works hard at the Ministry, capturing rogue death eaters still roaming society. When she is given the assignment to protect Malfoy, she is less than impressed. However, dedicated to her career, Hermione dutifully moves into Malfoy Manor and tries in vain to keep her sanity, relationships and career intact. Although Draco (and best friend Blaise) have other plans.
1. Chapter 1

Hermione sighed as she flopped down onto her squishy, comfortable, red couch. It had been another long day working at the Auror Department at the Ministry. You would think that being a part of the famous trio who saved the world, would give you some advantages. Yes, you _would_ think that.

Hermione worked alongside her two best friends, Harry Potter and Ron Weasley, and the department often put all three of them on cases, as the trio worked well together, and had a good time at it. They were currently working on a case, that involved the two Greengrass sisters from Hogwarts. Hermione, Harry and Ron were supposed to find, and catch the Greengrass sisters for being death eaters.

There were still Death Eaters roaming around, using dark magic and seeking vengeance for Voldemort's death by making attacks on innocent muggles, muggle-born wizards and witches, and former death eaters- for betraying them. Years had passed since Voldemort's death and Hermione still hadn't understood why Death Eaters hadn't all been rounded up and caught.

But thanks to the Auror Department, the numbers were slowly going down, but there were still quite a few out there. The trio was close to catching Astoria and Daphne Greengrass, they believe that the two sisters will be at Justin Finch-Fletchley's apartment tomorrow night, so thankfully Harry had told Justin to evacuate the premises and stay at the Leaky Cauldron until the two sisters were brought into the Ministry.

Harry, Ron and Hermione were supposed to go to Finch-Fletchley's apartment at exactly 7 pm tomorrow night and get into their positions, ready and waiting for when the sisters would hopefully show up. Hermione was slightly nervous about the trap but relaxed at the same time as she thought about the small vacation she was going to take after they had closed the case. She was a downright hard worker and Merlin knew she deserved it.

Hermione stretched out on her couch, the latest Witch Weekly in her left-hand and a cup of tea in her other. All she wanted to do was relax after a difficult day's work.

Then her phone rang.

Sighing disbelievingly, Hermione got up from her oh-so-comfortable position and went to fetch the phone she pictured lying face down on the kitchen table. She walked out of the lounge room, across the hallway, into the kitchen, around her dining table, just to answer the damn call.

"Hello?" She questioned.

"Hermione?!" the speaker practically screamed out at her.

"Fred? What do you need?" Hermione asked, wearily and half-deaf.

"George and I need some assistance down in the shop again; do you think you could help us out?!" Fred screamed again, his tone pleading and desperate.

Damn Fred, he knew she could never say no to helping a friend in need.

"LOWER YOUR TONE." She unhelpfully yelled back, before pausing. "…okay, just for a little bit Fred, I've had a hard day at work," Hermione said, slightly frowning, wondering if it really was a good idea to teach the twins how to use a muggle phone.

"You're the best, see you soon," Fred answered in a satisfied voice.

"Yeah, bye," Hermione muttered lamely, hanging up. She put the phone back on the bench and stood there with her hands on her hips.

Hermione helped out every now and then at the Weasleys Wizard Wheezers joke shop because she felt the need to somehow pay back the Weasley family for caring for her all those times she had stayed at The Burrow during holidays from school. She still went over there for Sunday lunch every week, to catch up with everyone, and see the large family. Hermione had already tried helping Mrs Weasley, but she just wouldn't have it, so she helped Fred and George out instead. Besides, Hermione liked the atmosphere in that shop, and the twins _always_ made her laugh. Maybe it would help lighten her mood a bit after a boring day at the Ministry.

Hermione went upstairs to her bedroom and changed out of her work robes, throwing on a pair of black jeans, and a simple maroon tank. She tried to tame her bushy hair but gave up on the effort as she realised that it was going to get bushy in the humid shop anyways. After running a quick brush through it, she pulled it back into a messy bun at the nape of her neck.

Ginny had bought her a whole lot of hair and beauty potions for Christmas, but Hermione only really used it for special occasions. And not meaning to offend the joke shop, but it was hardly worth getting dressed up for. Hermione then turned on the spot and apparated straight into the shop.

"Hermione! How lovely to see you!" George yelled, making his way from behind the counter and towards her.

"Hermione! How superb of you to stop by!" Fred exclaimed, following his brother's lead and coming towards her.

They each gave her a peck on the cheek, grabbed her arms, and lead her back behind the counter before Hermione could even register what was going on.

"I simply couldn't resist coming to visit," Hermione said sarcastically, rolling her eyes, and sitting on the stool behind the shop counter.

"Is that sarcasm I detect, Fred?"

"I think it is, George."

"I have no idea what you are talking about. Now you two boys run along and go do whatever you need to do, I can't stay for long." Hermione smiled.

"Yes, Ma'am!" They both said at once and marched towards the storeroom.

Fred and George really hadn't changed much physically since the war, emotionally, she wasn't so sure- but then again George had lost an ear, Fred had a few scratches, and they BOTH had gotten taller and lankier, but their red hair and personalities still hadn't changed. That was a good thing though, Hermione thought. They all loved to laugh, and who better to help cheer you up than Fred and George themselves?

Without them, the joke shop wouldn't exist. The wonderful shop where things would go bang and emit smoke. There were things that made you sick, things that made you laugh. Magic tricks, lollies, love potions, toys, muggle 'magic' tricks- the twins had put a lot of effort into this shop, and it had done them well.

Hermione handled any customers that came in, while Fred and George were in the storeroom, either updating their money books or making more products. After about an hour, Hermione decided it was about time she headed home to get some sleep before her 'stake out' tomorrow.

She was just about to enter the storeroom to bid the twins goodbye when she heard the familiar tinkle of the bell above the shop door. Someone had entered the shop. Hermione couldn't see who it was but decided to remain at the register until the person was gone. She stayed behind the counter patiently and a good five minutes went past. She fiddled with a strand of her hair, longingly thinking of her bed until she convinced herself to hurry the process up and see if the customer needed any help.

Hermione finally located the customer, he was towards the right of the store, so she made her way towards him. His back was facing her.

"Excuse me, Sir, would you like any assistance?" Hermione asked politely, as she would with any customer.

The male visibly tensed but did not turn around. Hermione thought it was rather odd, so she peered at him, curious. He had quite a muscular back, and arms, from what she could see. He had slightly messy platinum blond hair and wore expensive black dress robes. This couldn't be...

"Malfoy?" She questioned loudly, with a look of disbelief on visible on her face.

Draco's shoulders tensed even more when that all too familiar voice said his name so loudly- he was positive the whole world could hear. He wondered if it would be wise if he were to simply walk out, but decided that the bossy witch, probably wouldn't let him take two steps out of there. He slowly turned around to face her, plastering a smirk on his face, just to annoy her.

"Why, Granger, I didn't think you would end up working in this dump...unless your dating one of those buffoons," Draco said scathingly, holding himself tall to intimidate her.

He scanned her figure once and came to the conclusion that her hair was still a dung beetles nest, and her face and physique was still as plain as ever.

"Those 'buffoons' created the 'dump' you're standing in." Hermione defended angrily.

"Which is precisely why I would like to get out of here as quickly as possible, so if you stopped badgering me, I would be able to buy the product I actually want," Draco replied coolly, turning back around to face the puking pasties.

"And what exactly is the product you wish to buy?" Hermione's voice wavered as she struggled against her automatic polite retail response and

frustration at his rudeness.

Draco almost laughed at how worked up she was getting, but stopped himself just before he showed her any humour.

"These." Draco picked up the packet of puking pasties and waved it in front of her face. He fished for a couple of loose galleons in his pocket and thrust them at her.

"Sorry, no death eaters allowed in this shop." Hermione voiced bravely, eyes blazing with hatred, and her stance defensive. She knew she was using her hatred for the man to be biased, but her Auror defence was kicking in.

Although Draco wasn't really a death eater, his father was in jail and he was still biased against. Draco had been spared because of his age. Even though he didn't go around acting like a common death eater and killing innocents, he still disliked muggles, blood traitors, and mudbloods. But he had changed his ways and wasn't so verbal about hating them. He spoke to them as best he could and left it at that. Granger, Potter and the Weasleys were an exception, of course. But when she called him a death eater, it stung- because that was so far from the man he was now.

"Just take the damn money, Granger, before this gets ugly." Draco barked, with his arm still outstretched with the money.

"And what would a death eater need with puking pasties?" Hermione demanded, hand twitching to her wand in her back jean pocket.

Her slight action was not lost in Draco's eyes.

"And what would a mudbl- bitch like you," Draco corrected himself, "Need with a wand?"

He had given her a chance to avoid this, but he guessed that she was still just as stubborn as she was at Hogwarts.

Hermione's eyes flashed dangerously, and her fingers curled around the wand in her pocket. Draco seriously didn't want to waste time in this dump, talking to Granger, out of _all_ people, so he acted quickly and decided to get this over and done with.

"If you must know, I would like to take a day off of work on Monday, and this is efficient enough for that job. You have overstepped into my 'death eater' business, and as much as I would like to spend more time standing here talking to you, I have other business to attend to." Draco drawled, acting as indifferent as he could muster.

He shook the galleons slightly in her face, and she finally took them reluctantly. He put the puking pasties into his pocket and started making his way to the door.

"You're a galleon over the price!" came Hermione's shrill voice.

"Consider it a tip for excellent customer service!" He barked back, glancing over his shoulder, only to see her still standing in the same position, staring at him.

Excellent customer service? What a... what a... a... death eater! Hermione should have arrested him on the spot! Although she did know that he wasn't exactly a death eater... he was still...still... mean! She turned around and marched back to the counter, slipping the two coins into the register, then marching into the storeroom.

"Hey guys, mind if I leave? I'm feeling mighty tired." Hermione said, standing in the doorway, stretching her arms, careful to avoid all the clatter.

"Gosh Hermione, you look beat! Go home, get some rest!" Fred fussed over her, standing up from his chair at the desk him and George were working at.

"Yes, I think I will, thanks," Hermione replied rather grumpily.

Well she wasn't exactly going to go flying hippogriffs, was she? She didn't need Fred to tell her the obvious, but she had successfully bitten her tongue to keep those remarks down. Malfoy should not be affecting her mood so easily.

"Thanks for the help, Hermione, we really appreciate it," George said gratefully, smiling at her.

"No worries, goodnight," Hermione mumbled. She turned on the spot and apparated straight back into her kitchen.

She walked like a zombie towards the kitchen cupboard, got out some muggle cat food, and shook some of it in a bowl on the floor for Crookshanks to eat whenever he was hungry. She put out a saucer of milk and then dragged herself up the stairs, pulling off her clothes as she went, flinging them on the floor of her bedroom, to join the other piles of dirty clothes strewn everywhere. Then she landed quite ungracefully across her double four poster bed. She snuggled into the warmth under her covers, and slowly drifted off to sleep.

Hermione saw big red numbers on her alarm clock, telling her it was eight pm. She leapt out of bed, only to find herself leaping off of a couch, instead of her comfortable four poster. She glanced around and found herself in Justin's apartment already. She noticed a shadow of someone standing in front of her.

"Harry? Ron?" Hermione asked the shadow.

"No, Granger." Came a quiet voice she slightly recognised.

She saw Harry and Ron lying on the floor in front of this man, with their eyes closed, and blood trickling from somewhere. She fumbled to find her wand, only to find she was still in her Pj's, with her wand nowhere to be seen.

"Lumos." whispered the voice again, and the area fully lit up, and the shadow turned around to face her.

"Malfoy?" Hermione gasped, backing up, the back of her knees hitting the couch, as she saw all the blood dripping down the front of his robes.

He reached out a hand for her, desperately grasping for hers, but before he could touch her, Hermione woke with a start, sitting up in bed, looking wide-eyed around.

She saw Crookshanks lying at the end of her bed, her clothes strewn everywhere on the floor, and she relaxed. It was only a dream. A terrible nightmare, conjured by the days events. With any luck, she will forget it by morning.


	2. Chapter 2

Hermione awoke to find her vision blurred with sleep. She groaned and rolled over to look at her clock on her bedside table. After she had rubbed her eyes and blinked a few times, she groaned even louder when she realised it was one pm in the afternoon.

Harry and Ron would be there soon, to discuss tactics and plans about the stakeout they were doing that night. Hermione lazily rolled out of bed, and padded slowly towards the bathroom, straight for the shower. In which she welcomed the steam and hot water with open arms.

After her shower Hermione strolled downstairs to the kitchen, wearing a fluffy purple robe. Her stomach was rumbling repeatedly and she decided she was going to indulge in something healthy- something that she wouldn't regret later on.

Biting into a massive, juicy green apple, Hermione jumped slightly when there was a roar of fire which resulted in Harry stepping out of her fireplace, stumbling slightly. Hermione grinned and rushed towards the fireplace to greet him. Harry pecked her on the cheek, eyeing her appearance disapprovingly.

"Had a late night last night?" Harry questioned, half-jokingly. "They really do keep you in late."

"Just a late start this morning- and yeah, tell me about it." Hermione sniffed. "When's Ron coming?"

"Well, he should be here any minute," Harry replied, walking into the kitchen to scavenge through the fridge.

"I'm going to get changed, be back down in a minute!" Hermione called down to him while jogging up the stairs.

Hermione was used to having the boys over in her smallish house since they would pop in practically all the time. Although Harry had his own house with his pregnant wife Ginny and Ron still lived at The Burrow, her house was their second home.

Hermione had thought about inviting Ron to stay with her but decided against it in the end because it would be better to avoid any awkward tension. They had a brief relationship when the war was over, but Hermione realised that they had been caught in the moment. Ron and her were just too different personality wise and they had always been better off as best friends than girlfriend and boyfriend. After that had fizzled, Hermione poured her heart and soul into her job, not wanting any man to slow her down.

Hermione got changed into black jeans, and a navy blue hoodie quickly, and pulled her wet hair up into a loose ponytail, grabbed a folder from her bedside table, then bounded back downstairs.

She was pleased to see that Ron had arrived and he and Harry were lounging around in her living room, digging into a tub of ice cream. Files and loose papers were stacked on her coffee table and Ron was collapsed in the armchair next to the fireplace. Harry looked up at her guiltily from the plush couch he was relaxing on.

"Really? Ice cream?" she criticised, raising her eyebrows in mock anger at Ron as she brushed past Harry to sit next to him.

"Gotta get us pumped up for tonight, 'Mione," Ron explained through a mouthful of ice cream.

"Pumped up on _ice cream_?" Hermione retorted, glancing at Ron disgustedly.

"Let's just get started, shall we?" Harry pointed out quickly, running a hand through his messy black hair.

"Ok, well I have a map of Justin's apartment, so we should have a look at it to work out where we will hide, and where the best advantage points are, and such... and we will also need to work out escape routes, and tactics, and certain spells we should use and-"

"Let's just start by working out where we are gonna attack from." Harry hastily said as Ron rolled his eyes at her rambling.

"Alright," Hermione blushed. "As you walk in the door, the kitchen counter blocks off the vision of the kitchen on the right, so one of us could hide behind the counter. The couch is facing the door, so someone could hide behind there, I guess, and someone could be hiding just beyond the hallway, that comes off the kitchen?"

"Yeah, that sounds like that will work." Harry nodded, reaching over to the coffee table for more ice cream.

"I reckon if there happens to be more than three death eater's there, we should abandon it," Ron added seriously.

"Yes I agree, I don't want another battle breaking out. If that occurs, we are to disapparate straight to the ministry, same goes for if one of us gets hurt- help the injured and get out." Hermione reasoned, frowning at the thought.

"As for spells, I think we should just go straight for the knockout, no mucking around with hexes or jinxes- I just want to get this over and done with." Harry firmly said.

"Yes, same here." Hermione sighed, thinking of getting a break from work.

After the trio had gone through every detail they needed to about the case, they chatted for a while. Catching up with each other over ice cream (so much for Hermione's healthy start) and tried to forget about the events on for that night. It was around 5 o'clock when the boys decided to leave, go back to their homes, and have dinner before they were to meet up again.

"Alright, meet outside of Justin's apartment, at exactly 7, okay?" Harry confirmed, looking more forcefully at Ron.

"Yes, okay, I got it, 7 o'clock, no earlier, no later," Ron said, disgruntled at Harry's lack of faith in him to know the meeting time.

"Say hi to the family for me Ron, and give Ginny my best, Harry, tell her I will be going on break after this case and that we will be able to finally go shopping." Hermione begrudgingly told him.

After weeks of Ginny nagging her that they needed to have a girls day out, they could finally have one, although, Hermione was not looking forward to it. Merlin only knew what Ginny had in store for her.

"Will do, Ginny will be over the moon to hear that- she has been cooped up for a while, sleeping, peeing, and eating all the time." Harry grimaced.

"Well, we'll see you tonight." Ron said climbing in the fireplace and shouting 'The Burrow!'. Harry squeezed Hermione's hand, got up from the couch and followed Ron's lead, and shouting 'The Potter's!', and off he went.

Hermione sat there watching the last few flames disappear before she decided she had better get at least one good meal today. She walked into the kitchen and started pottering away at the stove making spaghetti for dinner. Hermione had never been good on household spells, so she preferred to clean, cook, and do everything else by hand, to save the frustration.

Hermione carefully placed herself on the couch, whilst holding her bowl of pasta, and setting a glass of water on the coffee table. She grabbed her issue of yesterdays Witch Weekly and started flicking through the pages to where she left off. Hermione had just found her page, and precariously put her bowl of pasta on her lap, when Crookshanks waddled into the room.

"Hey, Crookshanks! You missed Harry and Ron today! Yes, you di- Crookshanks! NO!"

Crookshanks, whilst listening to his owner ramble, had slowly made his way towards the coffee table and jumped up on it.

Which would have been alright IF Hermione's glass of water wasn't on it. Which would have been alright IF, in an effort to move the glass, Hermione _hadn't_ tipped her bowl of pasta all over her self, and sent it crashing to the floor.

"Shoot," Hermione muttered as water went all over her coffee table, and red pasta dripped all over her navy hoodie and jeans.

"Crookshanks! Go away!" Hermione growled, pointing towards the door. Crookshanks looked pitifully at her and waddled the other way. " Damn cat... Need to clean up this crap..."

Hermione set the glass the right way up and started to pick up the broken pieces of her bowl by hand, not even bothering to take out her wand and attempt a cleaning spell.

By the time Hermione had cleaned up the water and made sure all the sharp pieces were cleared, she sure was hungry. She decided to put some good old Mac and Cheese on the stove whilst she went upstairs to change out of her pasta stained clothes.

As she was going upstairs she realised that it was already 7 o'clock!

She was going to be late! Hermione ran up the stairs and decided she didn't have time to change her dirty clothes, and she hastily disapparated on the spot, to get to Justin's apartment in time.

Hermione appeared in a narrow, dimly lit hallway, in front of a navy blue door- which was slightly open. Hermione, Harry and Ron had planned that if one of them was late, the others get into position, and leave the door slightly ajar, so the latecomer would know not to wait outside for them.

Hermione quickly scuttled inside, shutting the door quietly behind her, and taking out her wand. Hermione's eyes were still adjusting when she saw a movement in front of her. She squinted her eyes, and raised her wand in a defensive stance, ready to attack in case the Greengrass sisters were already there.

She heard a slight crash as if something had fallen, and she took a couple more steps forward in the dark. To attack, or not to attack? Risk hurting Harry or Ron? Or risk NOT hurting the death eaters?

She saw a figure crouch down low, and Hermione had just made up her mind to use a stunner spell when there were two 'pops' from where she was just previously standing. Hermione whipped around and completely forgot about the figure, now standing behind her, and raised her wand at the two imposing figures.

"Crucio!" One figure yelled, sending a jet of yellow light at her, which she managed to dodge just in time.

"Get down!" Two familiar voices screamed, "Stupefy!"

She quickly crouched down and watched as the two streams of red light streamed over her head, but missed their targets.

"It's a trap, Astoria! Get out!" presumably Daphne screeched hysterically.

"Stupefy!" Hermione yelled, from the floor, at Astoria who was closest to her. Astoria fell to the floor in a heap, and Daphne gave a low growl.

From where Daphne was standing at the door, she launched herself at Hermione- the closest person she could see, pushing her over backwards, and hitting the floor. Daphne thrust her wand into Hermione's throat quite sharply, which caused Hermione to gasp in pain. Hermione had completely not expected the attack and had dropped her wand in the process.

"Stupefy!" Came Harry's voice, as he shot the spell at Daphne. Daphne slumped, completely on top of Hermione, which made it even more difficult for her to breathe.

"Mobilicorpus," Ron grumbled, levitating Daphne off of Hermione, over to where her sister was.

"Thanks, let's get them bound, and to the ministry." Hermione panted, snatching up her wand and gingerly standing up and testing out her sore bones.

"Hermione! Your bleeding! We need to get you to St Mungo's!" Harry worriedly yelled at her.

Startled, Hermione looked down her body to check for wounds or scratches but found nothing. Nothing but her pasta sauce all over her clothes and hands.

"No, I'm not, it's just pasta." Hermione hastily explained.

She made her way over to the two sisters and pushed them over so they were lying on their backs.

"Pasta? How did you get pasta on you? Are you sure that's not blood?" Ron rambled, wide-eyed.

"Yes I'm sure, now are you going to help me or not?" Hermione snapped, impatiently. She knew she was being unreasonable- she was the one that came late to the attack she had carefully made. But Hermione's body was aching, she was starving, her clothes were sticky, and she was tired. She just wanted to get these death eaters to the ministry and go home for her well-deserved break.

"Incarcerous," Hermione muttered, pointing her wand at Astoria.

Ropes shot out of her wand and bound the death eaters hands and ankles together. And she heard Ron do the same thing with Daphne.

"So what happened? How come you weren't in your advantage point?" Harry questioned, looking at Hermione.

"Well I was late getting here, then I saw Ron next to the couch, and I wasn't sure if it _was_ Ron or someone else- cause he was making a _hell_ of a lot of noise for someone on a stakeout- And then the death eaters came in behind me."

"Well, maybe next time we should all be a little more careful, at getting here on time, and being quiet." Harry chided, glancing at Hermione and Ron.

Hermione frowned at him, it's not as if she did it on purpose.

"Let's just get out of here." Hermione huffed, and Ron gave an agreeing grunt.

The boys each hoisted up the Greengrass sisters, and they all disapparated on the spot to the Ministry. All five of them appeared in the section allocated for these situations, and automatically three Aurors came to their aid and took the death eaters out of their hands, and straight into a spelled interrogation room.

The trio sighed as they slumped into the nearest chairs, waiting for their Head Auror to tell them what to do next.

While they were silently waiting for their orders, another Auror came up to the three, slightly short, and middle-aged, wearing blackening robes, that looked like they had been singed or burnt.

"Miss Granger?" The short man asked, looking directly at Hermione.

Harry, Ron and Hermione all looked up, wondering what this man wanted.

"Yes?" Hermione asked, wearily staring up at him.

"I'm Xander from Auror rescue department and…well, I'm afraid to say..." The man started nervously fidgeting.

Hermione glanced around the man, and noticed Gawain Robards, Head Auror, heading towards the group.

"Just say it, I want to hurry up and get home." Hermione snapped at the poor man, surprising herself.

Hermione instantly regretted it when she saw how sweaty and red-faced the man was. Hermione stood up and put a comforting hand on his shoulder. "What's happened?"

"I'm sorry Miss Granger, your... your house has burned down, the Aurors got there too late... your house had already burned down," Xander explained in a soft tone. "The cause of the fire was the stove left on for a prolonged amount of time."

Hermione's hand dropped from his shoulder, and she just stood there with her eyes wide, and mouth open. Harry and Ron stood up, and Harry took her hand, whilst Ron questioned Xander.

"We found a rather large cat hiding in the bushes out the front, but I'm afraid that was all we could find. Everything has been burnt and damaged." Xander replied, backing away, shaking his head with sincerity.

He apologised one more time, before leaving them.

"I cannot believe this... I lost my home! My clothes, my possessions! What... What am I going to do?" Hermione choked.

And just like that, her relief about catching the Greengrass sisters disappeared.

"Relax Hermione, you can stay with me at The Burrow, mum would be excited to have you stay for a while," Ron assured, smiling at her, in an effort to cheer her up.

"And Ginny can lend you some of her clothes, Merlin knows she isn't going to be needing them any time soon." Harry feebly attempted a joke, rubbing her hand with his thumb.

Hermione remained silent as she tried to process the events unfolding.

"And anything else you need, you just come to me, and I can loan you some money." Harry firmly said.

"This is all happening so fast! In one night I have lost everything, Harry this isn't a question about money. I have money, but my home, it's my home, I can't replace it, I- and valu- Oh! Mr Robards!" Hermione exclaimed close to tears, before spotting Mr Robards coming to a stop in front of the trio.

"Congratulations on catching the Greengrass sisters! A bonus to all of you!" Congratulated their head of office.

Hermione smiled flatly, mind still whirring. She had a good sum of money in Gringotts, enough to get a new flat.

But she felt empty.

"Mr Potter, Mr Weasley, you may go on your well-deserved break and pop in when you want to get back on duty." Mr Robards ordered, noddingcurtly at Harry and Ron.

Hermione was confused as to why he didn't mention her name.

"Sir?"

"Ah yes, Miss Granger, I have a different assignment for you, starting immediately." Mr Robards turned to Hermione, brushing the imaginary dust off of his work robes importantly.

Hermione felt her heart sink. What about her greatly deserved break?

"But-but sir! I thought I cou-!"

"No objections, I need you for this case, Miss Granger!"

"Mr Robards, I can take the assignment." Ron volunteered, as Hermione groaned next to him.

"I can see that you are eager Mr Weasley, but I need Granger for this one. Miss Granger, if you would meet me in the meeting room in a few minutes, I will discuss the details of the case with you." Robards nodded a crisp goodbye to Harry and Ron and stalked into his office across the hall.

Hermione impatiently brushed back the loose curls of her golden brown hair, behind her ear, and stared moodily at the ground. This was all happening too fast! Her house burned down, she couldn't get the break that she had been looking forward too...

"Harry, after Robards debriefs me, can I crash on your couch tonight?" Hermione asked, clearly trying to remain calm.

"Aren't you going to stay at The Burrow?" Ron queried, trying to peer into her eyes.

"I will, but if Ginny still wants to go shopping, I would like to go tomorrow, so I can buy some new stuff- it would be easier if I just stayed over there."

"Of course you can, I could transfigure the baby room into a spare bedroom if you like?" Harry empathised, squeezing her shoulder in comfort.

"No, I'll be fine on the couch, don't go to too much hassle," Hermione replied, not meeting his eyes.

"Alright, well Ginny and I will wait up for you," Harry assured, giving her a kiss on the cheek, and disapparating.

"I'll go find that Auror- Xander, and get Crookshanks, and take him home with me, ok?" Ron told her, giving her a hug.

"Thanks, Ronald, I'll owl you later" Hermione sniffed her reply.

She watched him go down the corridor, and thought to herself, 'and I thought spilling my pasta was bad enough.'

Hermione made her way into the meeting room across the rows of desks, to get this over and done with. She took a great lungful of air, and tried to calm herself, as she pushed open the door.

She released her breath with the words "What is _HE_ doing here?" as she noticed who was in the room.

* * *

 **A/N**

 **Thank you for giving my fanfic a chance- any favourite, follow or review is greatly appreciated.**

 **Where do you think this story will take us? What do you love most about Dramione? The flirty banter? The sexual tension? The slow realisation of attraction?**


	3. Chapter 3

Draco watched as the door opened, and a frizzy, bushy-haired girl, walked in, rosy-cheeked, and eyes glassy, as if she was about to cry. Draco felt that way too if he had to work with her.

"What is _HE_ doing here?" Hermione puffed out, glancing at him.

"What is _SHE_ doing here?" Draco asked, letting the two front legs of his chair fall to the ground with an angry thud.

"Miss Granger, please take a seat, and we can get this started as soon as possible." Gawain Robards said sternly, ignoring their questions and puzzled faces.

Hermione quickly bustled to sit on Robards left, in front of Draco, on the very long meeting table.

Draco stared hard at Robards, wondering why on earth he was here. Wasn't this man Head of the Auror office? What did he need with Draco? And why was Granger here?

"Miss Granger, your next case is to be Mr Malfoy's protection detail," Robards announced, glancing between the two, and seeing their confused faces, he elaborated. "What I mean to say is that you, Miss Granger, will be sort of... babysitting, Mr Malfoy until we can sort out this situation, or another arrangement."

"What? Wha-What for? I don't need protection!" Draco spluttered, trying to understand. Where was this coming from?

"We have evidence that the death eaters are trying to recruit you into their little newly forming group ... _again_." Robards stated.

Draco ignored the little jab at the end and tried to figure out what evidence they could possibly have that proves that theory.

"Sir? What evidence suggests that fact?" Hermione asked, acting professional, voicing Draco's exact thoughts.

Hermione was flabbergasted at this turn of events. In what world is she late for a case, leaves her stove on and burns her house down, and now has to babysit her ex-enemy?

"Whilst upon the initial physical search of the Greengrass sisters that you have just brought in Miss Granger, they had a map in their pocket... a map of Mr Malfoy's mansion and its grounds," Robards explained.

Draco impatiently jumped at the absurdity. "Why would they have that in their pockets? Don't you think they would have hidden it somewhere safe, instead of taking it to Fletchley's? Seems a bit stupid, don't you think?"

Hermione grimaced at Draco's casual choice of words. Did he know he was addressing the head of office? Not just chatting with a friend. She glanced towards Robards who had a stern look on his face and pursed lips. If he wouldn't say anything, she certainly would.

"Don't you think the important question is _how_ they had a map of your mansion? And _why_ they would _need_ a map of your mansion in the first place?" Hermione hissed, looking at him through narrowed eyes.

"Well I don't know Miss Perfect, because that is _your_ job to figure these things out, _I_ just work in the department of sports." Draco sneered, staring right back at her, completely forgetting the presence of the Ministry official.

Mr Robards decided to chime in then, as he glanced between the pair leaning closer and closer to the table.

"Exactly, Mr Malfoy, this is why Miss Granger here, is going to be your protection detail, whilst she, and our team at the Auror office, will try and discover more on this case, and if it _is_ a case, try and close it." Robards firmly surmised, leaning back in his own chair as if that settled the matter.

"I can handle myself!" Draco practically yelled. He heard Hermione snort, and his cheeks went slightly red as he realised what he just said. "Well, you know what I mean. I don't need some _girl_ to protect me. And might I just add, some _girl_ with what looks like _pasta_ _sauce_ all over her."

She was aware that she had just chastised Harry and Ron for confusing it for blood, but she would be sure not to be embarrassed by Draco Malfoy in front of her boss.

"Wha-you-Mal- this is not sauce! I was just on an assignment- its blood." Hermione protested, sticking her nose up in the air, defensively.

"Whatever- if I have to have a 'protection detail'," Draco used his hands to make air quotes showing he thought it was ridiculous, "I will _not_ have Granger. I can't stand her."

Draco even surprised himself with the words that were slipping out of his mouth. Since Hogwarts, Draco had learned to hold his tongue, even (without second-guessing their blood, or wealth) act politely towards other wizards and witches. There was just something about his old enemy that took him back to his mean demeanour.

Robards had heard enough. "Miss Granger is one of our top three Aurors, and between Potter and Weasley, she is the most level-headed and rational. You will be civil towards each other. Despite your differences, we are after the same outcome here- your safety Mr Malfoy."

Draco sat there, mouth agape. Was this really happening? Was _Granger_ really going to _protect him_? No more private life, and hello personal annoying shadow.

"What exactly does this assignment entail?" Hermione asked, a small frown on her face.

She resigned herself to her new assignment. She had worked so hard over the past few months, putting all her efforts into every task she had. Hermione was stubborn enough not to let that change now.

"Well, all you have to really do is set up secure enchantments surrounding his house, and floo network, and follow him around as Mr Malfoy continues with his daily life. If he goes to visit a friend, you go and visit his friend, if he wants a quiet day at home, you spend the quiet day at his home. As long as you are both in the manor, I see no reason for you not to do your own personal thing- as long as you are both in the vicinity- use your discretion Miss Granger," Robards clarified, "That only goes for when you are behind protective enchantments, though, so be aware. You will keep a wary eye out for potential suspects and dangers, and report any to the department. The only times I want you to leave his side, is when he goes to work, and when he goes to sleep."

Hermione quickly conjured up a piece of parchment, ink and quill, and started scribbling notes for future reference. "And while he works and sleeps, sir?"

"When Mr Malfoy goes to work, you will come to your office and work on the case. After he finishes work, you are to pick him up and continue your day. While Mr Malfoy is sleeping, I see no issue for you to go home- as long as you continue to check on the protective enchantments." Robards concluded, clasping his fingers together as he reeled off the perimeters of the assignment.

Hermione grimaced sadly at the mention of her now non-existent home.

Draco sat in his chair ignoring the conversation, still processing that this was actually happening. He hadn't seen Hermione Granger in so long, and now twice in two days… and she was his _protection_ now?

"My house is no longer an option for me, so I am staying with Ronald at The Burrow-" Hermione started to explain.

"I would have to object Miss Granger, Mr Weasely has told me previously that his home has its own wards to stop people apparating to and from directly. It is too inconvenient."

Hermione frowned at his reasoning, unsure of what to offer the older man in terms of a solution until-

"You will move in with Mr Malfoy at the Manor."

Draco hadn't been paying much attention to the pair in front of him, eyes glazed over as he thought about the possibilities of this situation, but at that particular statement he sat up straight and glanced anxiously between the two.

"Sir, I really don't think that's wise-" Hermione began, wide-eyed and mouth agape.

She couldn't possibly imagine living at the manor with him.

"Of course it's not wise! I don't want-" Draco stopped himself before he said something he would regret, "I don't want _Granger_ in my mansion! I'd kill her in the first five seconds!" Draco yelled, close to outright losing his temper. This was ridiculous.

"Please Mr Malfoy, calm yourself. If this doesn't happen right, _you_ could be killed in the first five seconds," Robards said loudly, finally losing _his_ temper, "This case could be resolved in _two_ _days_ if there is a reasonable explanation for the map. Miss Granger, Mr Malfoy you will have tomorrow to get your affairs in order, and I want Miss Granger moved into the mansion by tomorrow night. I hope your first night in the mansion is pleasurable, Miss Granger, and I will see you when you come into work next." Robards finished, quickly, with an air of finality to the discussion.

He got up and left, leaving the two old enemies alone in the room, both flabbergasted at the evenings turn of events.

Hermione started to fold up the notes she made, and stuff them hastily in her stained jeans pocket. She could feel his eyes trained on her face, but she didn't want to give him the satisfaction of seeing her on edge.

"So what happened to your house, Granger… not have enough money to pay for it? Is that why you work two jobs- as an Auror, and a joke? Whoops, I meant, _at_ a joke shop _._ " Draco sneered at her, leaning back in his chair.

He knew that it was not his best retort by far, but he had a need to make her uncomfortable. Merlin only knew why.

Draco watched the witch, trying not to give a victorious smile, as she closed her eyes and breathed for a few minutes.

"If we're going to live together for a little while, could we at least _try_ and be civil?" Hermione asked testily.

Before he could retort back, she stormed out of the door and banged it closed.

Boy, Draco was _not_ looking forward to these coming few days.

* * *

Harry, herself and Ginny were sitting in their warm lounge room, on the couch, Harry with a frown on his face as he listened to his best friend rant, and Ginny absentmindedly rubbing her protruding belly. Hermione had just finished rambling about the new assignment that she had been chosen for.

"Don't worry Hermione, Ron and I will solve this case, and have you back home in no time," Harry told her confidently, reaching over to pat her on the back consolingly.

"Goodness me!" Ginny startled, ogling at Hermione.

"What?" asked both Harry and Hermione at the same time, instinctively reaching for their wands in surprise.

"You're filthy Hermione! We need to get you cleaned up, Why don't you go take a long hot bath and relax, then I can pamper you, and-"

Ginny was right, Hermione looked a mess. She was still wearing her stained clothes, and her hair had frizzed up, the more stressed she got. She desperately wanted that hot bath that was kindly offered to her, to help ease her muscle aches and strains as well, but couldn't muster the energy.

"Gin, I just want to go to sleep, I promise, tomorrow you can pamper me, and do whatever you like to me, I'm just exhausted from today's events." Hermione groaned, as Harry chuckled next to Ginny, relaxed again.

"Fine! But mark my words, Hermione Jean Granger! I _will_ pamper you tomorrow." Ginny pouted.

Ginny handed Hermione a pair of shorts and a tank top. The young couple bid Hermione goodnight, as she crashed onto the couch that was made up for her. Almost instantly, Hermione found herself falling asleep. Her dreams filled with fires everywhere, magnificent colours of reds, yellows, and oranges.

* * *

Hermione awoke, slowly rubbing her eyes, and stretching her arms out before her. After stretching her body, she came to the conclusion that her body was aching even more than it was last night.

If only Greengrass hadn't of fallen on her. Better yet- If only she could have slept in her own bed, surrounded by all her possessions and valuables. She rolled over on the couch, to find a note sitting on the coffee table in front of her. She picked it up, and sat upright, to read it.

 _Hermione,_

 _I've gone to The Burrow today for Sunday lunch, (don't worry, I'll say hi for you) so you and Ginny can have some alone time. I'll be back before you have to leave for Malfoy's, so I will see you after your shopping. Have fun._

 _-Harry._

Hermione put down the note and slowly stood up to go see Ginny. She sighed when she caught her reflection in a mirror hanging on the wall, above the fireplace. Hermione's hair was a _complete_ mess, all tangled, and frizzy, she still had some pasta sauce on her fingers and arms, and her face was pale due to the aches of her bones.

Hermione had a feeling that she looked even worse last night, in front of Draco and this thought made her groan. She walked into Harry and Ginny's room, to find Ginny wrapped in a silk pink dressing gown- that went surprisingly well with her flaming red hair- putting freshly washed clothes in a drawer.

"Oh good, I was going to come to wake you up- I have a nice hot warm bubble bath waiting for you in the ensuite, just hop in there, and it will wake you right up." Ginny sang cheerily while searching through her massive chest of drawers.

"Oh Gin, that sounds lovely, but my bones are aching all over, I can barely walk!" Hermione moaned, looking longingly at the steam she could see coming out of the bathroom door.

"I'll put some potion in there for you then, come on." Ginny soothingly convinced, grabbing Hermione's hand, and pulling her through the bathroom door.

Hermione undressed out of Ginny's old clothes, and slowly stepped into the bath, while Ginny busily poured some type of purple potion into the already multi-coloured water. Hermione scrubbed herself pasta sauce free with the nice smelling soaps and Ginny shampooed and conditioned her hair, running soft fingers through it, and untangling all the knots.

"You're gonna be a great mother, Ginny." Hermione teased, with a smile on her face.

"Shut it you." Ginny replied, splashing soapy water at her, giggling.

After Hermione finished in the bath, Ginny blow dried her hair with her wand and put it in a fishtail braid, leaving a few hairs dangling down, framing her face. Ginny added a light touch of makeup and dressed her up in one of her old sundresses.

Hermione looked in the mirror, and couldn't help but think that Ginny could work wonders. Hermione's skin was glowing- far from the pale colour it had been this morning, and her chocolate brown eyes stood out from the light amount of eyeliner. Ginny had somehow made her curves look good by giving her a navy blue, thin strapped, dress that stopped an inch above her knees.

She was eternally grateful for having her friend mother her. Hermione was instantly feeling back to her normal self, both inside and out.

"Oh Ginny..." Hermione started to thank the witch.

"I know, I'm brilliant, amazing, and just plain awesome." Ginny winked at her, as she got dressed in her own clothes.

Ginny decided to go for black maternity jeans, and a bright yellow maternity spaghetti strapped top.

"Let's go shopping!" Ginny squealed excitedl.

Hermione rolled her eyes at her friend, and they both apparated into the bright, sunny Diagon Alley.

They spent all morning, and most of the afternoon shopping and Ginny happily gushed over all the guys that were apparently checking Hermione out. As they were exiting Flourish and Blotts, Hermione decided to announce her disbelief.

"Gin, they are not 'checking me out'" Hermione huffed, looking down at her sandal-clad feet, embarrassed to even be having this conversation.

"Yes, they are," Ginny giggled, as the pair passed a group of eager shoppers, "look! That man over there was totally just giving you the once over, and practically drooling! He doesn't look half bad from this distance... at least go and say hi!" Ginny rambled.

Hermione looked over at her friend, startled at the thought of going up to a stranger when she caught Ginny's mischievous grin.

"Oh no, what are you thinking, Gin-Aaahh!" Hermione screeched as Ginny pushed her lightly in the direction of the stranger who apparently gave her the 'once over'.

Hermione was pushed a surprising distance for a pregnant lady, and she stumbled to regain her balance. Someone shot out a strong arm and held her shoulders to help steady her, and Hermione looked up into the man's ice grey eyes, to awkwardly thank him.

"Are you stalking me or something?" Came the man's cool, but somewhat annoyed voice.

 _Malfoy._

Hermione took a few steps back and checked herself hastily to make sure she was presentable this time.

"If I remember correctly, Malfoy, _you_ came to the joke shop, and _you_ came to my work, so if anything, _you're_ stalking _me_." Hermione concluded, busily turning around looking for Ginny, doing her best not to look at him.

"I had no idea you worked at that miserable place, and I was _forced_ to go to your stupid work," Draco replied, leaning against the W _itches Wear_ shop wall.

"Draco!" Called a feminine voice from inside the shop.

"See you tonight, Granger." Draco added before, turning and walking into the shop to follow the light, shrilly call of the woman.

Hermione turned on her heel, and went in search of Ginny, fuming. Hermione did _not_ want to spend time babysitting Draco when he had a girl over. Hopefully, she was just a fling for today. Ew.

She found Ginny leaning against a shop building, fanning herself in the sun, and Hermione marched towards her crossly.

"So? How did you-?" Ginny started to ask.

Hermione just shook her head as a response, not wanting to relive the moment.

"Can we leave. Now? I wanna spend some time relaxing before I go to Malfoy's." Hermione pleaded.

"Fine, I guess we're finished shopping anyway." Ginny sighed, glancing contentedly at the many bags at her feet.

They apparated home together, and Ginny went into her bedroom to put her new stuff away.

Hermione sat on the couch, putting her numerous shopping bags on the floor. She had just bought some basic stuff, like a pair of jean shorts, a couple of shirts, a new pair of work robes, some underwear, toiletries and various potions, a couple of new books. She decided that she would probably borrow some other clothes off of Ginny for now.

Hermione then spent the rest of the afternoon packing her bag that she would take with her, and chatting with Ginny as she pottered around the House, tidying and cleaning.

Ginny was a bit uncomfortable and went to put some lotion on her sore feet, so Hermione was just sitting down to start reading a book, when the Weasley family owl, flew in an open window and delivered a letter straight to Hermione's lap, before flying away. She eagerly opened the envelope that was addressed to her in the twins handwriting, and read it.

 _Dear Hermione,_

 _The golden boy just told us that your house has burnt down. If you need anything, you can always count on us, and we will be there night and day, like knights in shining armour! You missed Sunday lunch today, so we expect to see you soon!_

 _Love, Gred and Forge._

 _P.S Harry says he will be home any minute now._

 _P.P.S Thank you muchly for helping us out again yesterday with our shop!_

 _P.P.P.S Won-Won said that he will regrettably look after Crookshanks while you are staying at Harry and Ginny's._

Hermione laughed as she read it. Fred and George could always make her laugh when she really needed it. She guessed that Harry and Ron told the family that she would be staying at Harry's for a while, as they couldn't really tell anyone about her assignment.

There was a loud 'popping' sound, and Harry appeared in front of her, crashing into the bags she had on the floor.

"I see you brought lots of stuff," Harry chuckled slightly, as he plopped down in his armchair.

"I just can't resist when Ginny's around," Hermione replied, poking her tongue out.

Ginny waddled into the room and walked over to Harry to give him a peck on the lips.

"How are we today, lovely?" Harry asked sweetly.

"We are feeling very tired, from all this shopping, I think I need a lie-down," Ginny responded, frowning, rubbing her belly.

"Well, I'll join you, in a bit, I'm just going to drop 'Mione off at Malfoy's," Harry announced, standing up.

"What? I don't need you to drop me off, Harry- I'm a big girl now." Hermione insisted, rolling her eyes.

"I know that, I just want to make sure you're alright." Harry decided, firmly.

Hermione sighed in defeat and finished packing her things.

Ginny went and got a few extra clothes for her, and with an extending charm on her new bag, they managed to fit all her belongings in it.

She gave Ginny a big hug, thanked her, and promised her that she would see her soon.

Harry picked up her lonely bag and they apparated straight to the front of the mansion's big double doors.

* * *

 **A/N Next chapter; Cue the introduction of another main character! Take your guesses now- what character/personality will he/she have?**

 **Thank you to Lullayby Tales and Son of Whitebeard for reviewing my chapters, it gives me motivation and is so appreciated.**  
 **Ideally, I would love to upload twice a week, but knowing my motivation levels, I will most likely be uploading every Sunday from now on, until I can work up to twice a week uploads.**


	4. Chapter 4

Hermione raised her fist to knock on the big brass doors of the mansion. Harry and Hermione waited patiently in silence for the door to open. She bit her lip, letting her anxiety over the situation show.

The pair had been prepared to have Draco open the door, but was shocked when someone else opened it.

"Zabini?" Harry asked, surprised, frowning at the seemingly unfamiliar man before them.

Hermione looked curiously at Harry. Did he know this man?

"Potter, Granger." The man nodded in greeting.

Hermione looked closer at the man. He had dark skin, high cheekbones, tall, and dark brown eyes.

Blaise Zabini.

Former Slytherin.

Although they never officially met, she remembered him from the Slug Club and being one of Malfoy's close friends.

"I'm actually here for Malfoy...so..." Hermione hinted uncertainly, peering around his strong build, into the mansion, as if she would be able to see Draco haughtily standing there.

"I know. Granger, you may come in." Blaise nodded curtly but continued to stand in the doorway making it impossible for Hermione to squeeze past.

Hermione followed Blaise's hard stare and found it directed at Harry, who looked like he would start fuming at any second.

"I'll send you an owl later Harry, thanks for dropping me off." Hermione prompted, grabbing for her bag that he was carrying for her. Harry allowed her to take it but crossed his arms defensively.

"I'm not sure I want to leave you in the company of _two_ Slytherins, 'Mione." Harry loudly insisted, talking to her, but refusing to lift his intense gaze from Blaise.

Hermione huffed at the situation she was in. She appreciated her friends' protectiveness, but Harry seemed to forget that they were no longer in Hogwarts- besides, Blaise nor Draco would be stupid enough to try anything with her when the Auror Department _knew_ she was there.

"Harry, I'm an Auror for goodness sake! I can look after myself- anyway, I'm the one that is supposed to protect him." Hermione explained quietly to Harry, as Blaise snickered at the bickering pair.

There was a moments pause before Harry conceded. "Owl me later, Hermione."

There was a loud crack as Harry disappeared, and Hermione turned to face Blaise. He stared at her for a few moments, eyes studying her closely. Hermione awkwardly shifted the weight of her bag, as she stood on the doorstep in the warm sun, unsure of what to say next.

"Of course, where are my manners? Come in." Blaise purred in a smooth voice, changing his demeanour now that Harry was gone.

He stepped aside, and she brushed past him into the wide entrance hall, marvelling at the impressiveness of the large area that opened up to adjoining rooms and corridors.

"Where's Malfoy?" Hermione asked, turning to face Blaise, who had closed the door behind her.

She had been caught unexpectedly- she had a plan formed in her head to lay out the rules and guidelines between herself and Draco, before disappearing into a room to wait out the next two days.

But now the young heir was nowhere to be seen and her confidence was slowly ebbing away.

"Busy." Blaise simply answered, leading her into a sitting area off from the entrance, just as she heard a woman's laugh echo through the hallway.

So that woman from Diagon Alley _did_ come home with him? Great.

"Yeah, I bet he's ' _busy'_ ," Hermione mumbled to herself, perching herself on the edge of the black leather couch, opposite of Blaise.

The lounge was vast, two leather couches faced each other with a mahogany coffee table between them. The walls were lined with shelves holding anything from books to trinkets, and matching black armchairs lined around. A fireplace was against the far wall- purely for transportation during these hot summer months. The room alone would have cost more than her house put together.

"What's that supposed to mean?" Blaise asked, his features giving off no emotion.

She wasn't aware that she had heard him mutter and struggled to defend herself.

Hermione assumed there would be a girl or two around the mansion, during her stay, as she had heard he was quite popular among the elite witches, but she hadn't assumed one would come that quickly.

Maybe Draco was doing this just to spite her.

She was trying to explain that she had heard the same woman earlier that day, and had assumed that Draco was busy with his 'girlfriend' when a handsome grin spilled onto Blaise's otherwise collected features, and he even started chuckling at her. This effectively stopped her rambled explanation.

"What's so funny?" Hermione began uncertainly.

"I would _love_ to know what is so funny." Interjected a light, female voice from behind her.

Hermione looked to her left, startled, and saw an older woman with beautiful long, blonde wavy hair, and the exact same grey eye colour as Draco's, standing in the archway of the lounge room.

Hermione had obviously vastly misread the situation.

"Oh-um, I'm...I'm Hermione-" Hermione started out, stammering slightly, intimidated by the older woman's sudden appearance.

"Yes, I know who you are Miss Granger, you _are_ the saviour of the world, after all. I'm Narcissa Malfoy, Draco's mother," She patted her son on the shoulder, who had appeared next to her, avoiding her eyes. "So, Blaise, I am interested in knowing what was so funny."

"Granger here was just telling me an embarrassing story." Blaise smoothly lied, glancing towards Hermione.

Hermione thought about how she had believed Mrs Malfoy to be a witch Draco was trying to charm, and silently agreed how it _was_ turning out to be an embarrassing story.

"Oh? Do tell Miss Granger." Mrs Malfoy asked, looking expectantly at her, while Draco silently raised an eyebrow at his friend.

"Oh, uhm…I-" Hermione began, stammering. For the brightest witch of her age, she was stammering an awful lot.

"I think Granger needs to get settled in, maybe she will share with you another time, Narcissa" Blaise laughed easily, and Hermione sent him a grateful glance.

"Well I would gladly show you to your room Miss Granger, but I do no longer live here, that is the task of the _owner_ of the mansion." Mrs Malfoy implied, sending a meaningful look towards the younger Malfoy, who had remained silent, observing the situation.

"She can find it on her own. She can do whatever she likes, it doesn't concern me. It's her job to 'babysit' _me_ , not the other way around." Draco replied scathingly, still not sparing her a glance.

He'd be damned if he had to make her stay here any more comfortable than necessary.

"Draco! Where are your manners?" Mrs Malfoy scolded him shooting him a glare that rivalled his own.

"Why do I need to show her manners, when she is prying into _my_ personal life?" Draco's eyes flashed at his mother, challenging her.

Hermione looked down, feeling awkward that they were talking about her as if she wasn't even there. She expected no less from the younger Malfoy and was capable of defending herself against him.

"Blaise, please take Miss Granger into her new room, I need to speak with my son." Mrs Malfoy ordered, looking at Blaise sweetly.

"Of course, Narcissa." Blaise agreed, standing up, and picking up Hermione's bag for her, acting quite the gentleman in front of Mrs Malfoy.

Hermione quickly stood and rushed out of the room following his quick strides.

"Is something wrong, mother?" Draco asked, sitting down casually where Blaise had just previously occupied.

He knew what his mother wanted to scold him about- he wasn't an idiot. But playing dumb could usually get him out of annoying conversations, that he had no time or regard for.

"Yes, there is," Narcissa barked, moving to tower over him impressively, "That girl is here to protect your life, the least you could do is show her some respect."

"My life doesn't need protecting. She is just invading my personal life, and she couldn't do it more annoyingly." Draco insisted, rolling his eyes at his mother's predictable intervening behaviour.

"She is a nice, beautiful, intelligent young lady, and obviously committed to her job. You are to at least _try_ and be _civil_ to her! I _will_ be visiting, and I _will_ see you two on good terms!" His mother ranted, pointing her perfectly manicured finger at him for added effect.

If he agreed and nodded his head, she might leave him alone soon.

"Yes, mother." Draco sighed, closing his eyes, as she continued to ramble at him.

* * *

"Zabini, wait up! Stop walking so fast!" Hermione called after him as he turned numerous corners, and went through countless doors throughout the manor.

She turned another corner- nearly running to catch up with him- when she ran straight into Blaise, her chin bumping his shoulder. She staggered back slightly, putting some distance between them, and frowned up at him.

"It's Blaise. You can call me Blaise. And it's not my fault you're slow." Blaise snickered, as he continued down the corridor, without waiting for a response.

"Slow my ass." She sniffed, as she hurried to catch up again.

They came to a stop in front of a mahogany door- so similar to many others they had passed, she wondered how he knew which room it was.

"If you talk about your ass, Granger, I might have to check it out." Blaise gave her a crooked grin.

She frowned at him. She had never really had anyone flirt with her and doubted it would start with Blaise Zabini of all people.

Hermione was unsure of how to respond, so she chose to mimic his words from before, "Its Hermione…you can call me Hermione."

Blaise let out a laugh at her clear awkwardness and opened the door.

There was a large king sized bed in the middle on the far wall, with about twenty pillows stacked on it. There was a large walk-in closet on the left, and adjacent to that was a bathroom. Hermione eagerly walked in there, to find a massive bath, and a shower that could fit two people, and lots of cupboards to put all her bathroom items in, underneath a big mirror.

She went back into the bedroom and sat on the bed, which was as soft as if you were sitting on a cloud. She could _definitely_ get used to this. She also noticed a dark mahogany desk to the right of the door, with an assortment of books, ink, and parchment, just waiting to be used. Hermione marvelled at how rich Draco must be to decorate like this.

"Do you like it, _Hermione_?" Blaise asked, putting her bag down for her at the end of the bed.

"It's …big." She replied lamely, taking in all of her surroundings.

There was a quiet pause between them, and Hermione felt the need to break it. She watched curiously as Blaise casually stood there with his hands in his pocket, looking at ease.

She could hear the faint voice of Mrs Malfoy downstairs, and Hermione instantly remembered the awkward conversation that Blaise had saved her from.

"Thanks," Hermione sheepishly voiced, fiddling with the hem of Ginny's navy sundress that she had on. It had risen to her mid-thigh as she sat on the bed.

"What for?" Blaise asked curiously, looking at her from around the bedpost.

"For not telling Mrs Malfoy what I thought was happening- you know I didn't mean to insinuate- I didn't know it was-"

Blaise laughed and sat on the opposite end of the bed, propping one knee up in a relaxed sitting position. "I thought that it wouldn't be a too good first impression if I did tell her."

Hermione thought back to their school days and realised she didn't know much about the young wizard sitting close to her. She had harshly judged him purely on two facts- that he was from Slytherin, and he was Draco's friend.

Maybe it was time to let her prejudice go.

"You're not too bad for a Slytherin, you know?" Hermione smiled, looking into his warm chocolate eyes.

"Well, you're not too bad for a Gryffindor either." Blaise mused, rolling his eyes.

"At least you're not as bad as Malfoy."

"At least _you're_ not as bad as Potter."

They both looked at each other, and they both laughed lightly at the easy banter they were creating.

When Draco had informed him about this new predicament, Blaise admitted he was hesitant at first. But Blaise knew he had to be on his best behaviour- he was an adult, time to start acting like one.

Before their laughter could die down, Draco appeared suddenly in the doorway. He observed his best friend and his old enemy sitting so casually on the bed together, and narrowed his eyes. "Sorry to interrupt your bonding time, but mother has finally left- and dinner is ready."

Draco sauntered back out again, without bothering to wait for an answer.

Hermione's mood sobered up faster than you could say whomping willow.

"Are you staying for dinner, Blaise?" Hermione asked, looking into his eyes desperately.

She did _not_ want to have an awkward dinner with her old enemy alone- and she and Blaise seemed to be getting along well. Hopefully, he could be the mediator between the two.

"Yeah, I am. I'm just going to go talk to Draco, I'll meet you in the dining room." Blaise quickly said, and he briskly walked out of the room, calling for Draco as he tried to catch up to the wizard.

Hermione sighed as she watched him go, but made no effort to get up herself- she had no idea where the dining room even was.

* * *

"Draco! Hey, Draco!" Blaise called out to him, lightly jogging down the corridor to catch up.

"Yes, Blaise?" Draco asked, without looking back. Draco had tried to take a longer route to the dining room in the hopes that neither of them would catch up to him.

Draco was in a bad mood, today was the day when a know it all Gryffindor moved into his guest bedroom, he had already been scolded by his mother, and now had just witnessed his best friend betraying him to play nice to previously mentioned Gryffindor girl.

"So how 'bout trying to be nice to Hermione?" Blaise asked, falling into step beside him, as they made their way to the dining room together.

" _Hermione_? So its _Hermione_ now?" Draco asked incredulously, waving his hands in front of him, in protest. Was he the only one staying sane around here?

"Its gonna be horrible for you _both_ if you are constantly at each other's throats. If you be civil, you can have a pleasant few days, until the Ministry sorts this shit out." Blaise explained slowly, ignoring Draco's words.

Blaise was only advocating for Hermione because he knew his best friend would be in terrible moods for the next few days- and it would only get worse. And truth be told, Blaise was a people person- he prided himself on charming everyone.

Draco decidedly ignored Blaise's reasoning. It was obvious he was playing knight in shining armour, and Draco wanted no part in it. "Wanna bet on how long it takes her to find the dining room?"

Blaise laughed, allowing the topic to be changed, "20 Galleons says she makes it halfway through the meal."

"20 Galleons says she makes it when we've finished the meal," Draco smirked.

"You're on."

They went down a flight of stairs, and turned to the left, and walked through to the dining table, only to find Hermione sitting at a seat, waiting patiently for the boys.

"How-how did you find your way down here so quickly?" Blaise spluttered, glancing at Draco with surprise.

"I'm not the smartest witch of our age for nothing you know." Hermione smiled, ignoring the scoffing that came from Draco.

In all honesty, a house elf had tried to come in and unpack her belongings, so she politely enlisted her help to find the dining room instead. Evidently, the house elf took her a shorter way than the two boys had come.

"So I suppose... neither of us wins?" Blaise asked, looking at Draco, as he took his place at the head of the table.

Blaise moved to sit on Draco's left, in front of Hermione.

"You suppose right Zabini," Draco affirmed, getting started on his food.

The quicker he started, the quicker this would be over.

"You had a _bet_ on me?" Hermione asked, looking between the two, slightly startled.

"We weren't in Slytherin for nothing you know." Blaise winked at her, as Hermione rolled her eyes.

They ate their dinner in silence for a few minutes, as Hermione looked around the room, her own brown eyes wondering from the glass chandelier above them to the expensive looking silverware on display in cupboards. She again wondered at the amount of money spent, before Blaise broke the silence.

"So, I'll be over here tomorrow for Quidditch, around… tenish?" Blaise asked, looking at Draco for confirmation.

"Yeah, whenever suits you, mother is coming around for lunch tomorrow if you would like to join us."

"Sounds like a plan."

"Wait, so we're _not_ going to work tomorrow?" Hermione questioned, obvious disappointment written on her face.

She wanted to start some progress on the case, the sooner she got out of here, the better.

"Nope- I didn't buy those puking pasties for nothing you know," Draco answered, not looking at her.

Hermione was surprised that he had even answered her, and before she could stop herself, she was already asking another question, "Where do you even work?"

Hermione waited for his response, but it seemed she pushed her luck too far. Alas, it was progress.

Blaise kicked Draco under the table for being rude, but Draco just moodily glared at his best friend. He was being civil- what more did he want.

Blaise interjected to save Hermione from another awkward silence. "Draco and I work at the Department of International Magical Games and Sports- just organising Quidditch games and international sports events. Where do you work?"

"That's interesting. Well, I work at the Auror department with Harry and Ron...that would be why I'm here... right now…" Hermione's sentence trailed off as she realised Blaise was just trying to be friendly and continue the conversation- and she had just babbled into yet another awkward silence.

Luckily, Blaise's charisma came to the rescue of her poor conversational skills.

"Speaking of Potter, is he dropping the rest of your things off?"

"What things?" Hermione asked as she finished her meal, and leant back in her comfortable chair.

"Well, you only brought one small bag with you, surely you have more items you need?" Blaise asked, looking at her curiously, setting his knife and fork down on his empty plate.

"Blaise, she is only staying for a few days, just long enough for Robards to clear her of a useless job- she _hardly_ needs that much stuff." Draco pointed out, wiping his mouth with a napkin, and staring hard at him.

"She's a girl. Girls always bring their whole wardrobe- even if they're only staying for one night!" Blaise joked, trying to lighten the mood.

Draco had reached the end of his patience. Blaise was supposed to be _his_ friend. His mother was supposed to be _his_ mother. He was already giving up some of his home to the witch, and now he had to listen to his best mate try and charm his friendship onto his enemy?

He suddenly remembered the articles in Witch Weekly that his mother and other witches had left lying around.

 _"Hermione Granger, part of the golden trio, proves she needs no man to achieve desired things in life.."_

 _"Miss Hermione Granger refuses to comment on her love life as she throws herself into her career in the Auror Department…"._

He used this knowledge to his advantage as he snapped.

"She might be a girl, but she _is_ Granger. Doesn't care about her ugly appearance, and she's too poor to spend money on it. No wonder she cant get a date to save her life." Draco boiled over.

He knew he was being rude, but his instincts took over.

Hermione just sat there. Wide-eyed. She could feel the heat flushing in her face.

She couldn't stand being talked about while she was still in the room- especially so rudely!

Hermione stood up and briskly walked out of the room, her eyes becoming slightly watery from anger.

Hermione heard Blaise snap at Draco before she got out of hearing range. "Stop being so rude to her, you're just reverting back to your old Hogwarts days- we are all adults now, you should try and get over it."

She wasn't necessarily upset by his words- he had said much worse to her. It was mostly just the absurdity of the situation- having another Slytherin question why she had no belongings, reminding her of her homelessness, all in front of her old enemy who she was sworn to protect despite his schoolboy rudeness.

Hermione walked into the entrance hall, pulling out her wand from Ginny's navy blue sundress pocket she was still wearing and decided she should get started on strengthening the protective enchantments while she was here.

She sighed as she pushed her emotions aside and got focussed on her work.

"Protago Totalum," Hermione started, waving her wand, "Protago Horribilis, Salvio Hexia..."

* * *

Hermione had just finished her work in the entrance hall and was slightly exhausted by all the magic she had just used. Blaise had left after dinner- he walked past her and gave her a meek goodbye, which she returned with a small smile.

But now that she and Draco were alone, it was the perfect opportunity for them to lay down some ground rules.

She spotted Draco sitting in the lounge room where she had sat when she first arrived, and she walked tentatively to stand next to the coffee table, in front of where he was sitting with a book on his lap.

Hermione hesitated there for a moment, unsure of what to say first.

Draco sensed her presence and inwardly cursed. What did the witch want now?

Hermione decided to break the silence, and to act as professional as she could, "I have put up the protective enchantments, so only Blaise, your mother, you, and I can apparate and floo in and out. Everyone else will have to walk through the gate the old-fashioned way. No spells can be used on the mansion from the outside either, so no one can destroy it. Also-"

Draco closed his book with a sharp snap and dropped it on the table. "Stop rambling Granger, I trust you know how to do your job."

"Well I think its necessary that you know," Hermione retorted, gesturing wildly in the air, "And you cannot continue to tell people that it's my job to protect you. Word will get out and Merlin knows what might happen."

"Fine with me. I've only told my mother and Blaise. I don't exactly want the whole wizarding world to know that Draco Malfoy is being protected by _Hermione Granger_. Especially seeing as I don't need protecting, from anyone like _you_." Draco snapped, taking a sip from his glass filled with whiskey.

Draco knew he was taking out his anger on the witch in front of him again, but it was embarrassing enough that the Auror department thought he couldn't protect himself.

Hermione closed her eyes and counted to ten. She would need to take up yoga or something to keep her temper in check with Draco around.

"Whatever, Malfoy." Hermione finally muttered.

Draco sighed and stood up from his relaxed position. He supposed he could try and be civil. "Look, Granger, we don't need to make this any harder than it already is. I'll mind my business if you mind yours."

Hermione eyed him suspiciously. Underneath his cool exterior, she could see there was something else there. His grey eyes bored into hers, and she suddenly became aware of how close they were now standing. She studied him like a puzzle she could solve.

Draco stared at Hermione… was she deaf? Her wide eyes continued to look at him, and he was unsure if he should repeat what he had said.

Hermione then took a step back, her eyes falling back to the floor suddenly. "As long as I can complete my job, I see no problem with that."

Draco nodded at her professional tone and grabbed his glass to down the rest of the burning liquid.

Hermione decided she couldn't handle any more awkward moments, so she quickly spun around on the spot, and walked out and up the short staircase that leads to all the confusing corridors, and hopefully- her new room.

After a few minutes of wandering around, Hermione finally thought she found her mahogany door- although they did all look the same.

Hermione turned the door handle, and walked in, sighing gratefully when she saw her little bag at the end of the bed, and the soft pillows awaiting her.

Hermione got undressed and she snuggled under the warmth of the dark green cover. She laid her head on one of the many pillows and waited for sleep to overcome her.

Hermione had a very confusing dream where she was back in the room with Robards and Malfoy, and they were having the same discussion. The words were swimming, not making sense of who was saying them. The room was darker, and she could hardly see the faces of her boss and previous enemy. Hermione sat in the room, confused.

The conversation would finish and then restart itself. And it would keep repeating. Hermione felt like she was stuck in a loop, and she was slowly getting more confused as the words got more and more jumbled up.

Until finally, Hermione woke with a start, her mind muddled, and not being able to remember what had happened in her dream. She laid there for a while, trying to remember her disturbing dream, but couldn't, so she went back to sleep, frustrated and somewhat on edge.

* * *

 **A/N. Thank you for the continuous reviews, favourites and follows, all is much appreciated.**

 **Next chapter will only be a short one as I have been unwell, but it develops characters, relationships and brings the start of our plot.**

 **What do you want to see more of? Blaise and Hermione's developing friendship? Draco's temperamental personality and thoughts?**


End file.
